Every time we talk about an external storage or backup solution, we can't help but underline the importance of keeping a safety copy of one's data in a secure location, and it would seems that two researchers from the US might have just learned the important of backup in the hardest possible way.
So, as a local site from Oklahoma, News 9, reports (via
Techeye), a couple of researchers working on a possible cure for prostate cancer within a research lab from Oklahoma University have just been left without their precious research results, that were stored within the HDD of an Apple laptop that got stolen.
The theft itself wasn't particularly spectacular - the 13-inch white MacBook was left within the researchers' car, whose window was broken while they were heaving dinner, with the computing system
disappearing.
However, the problem is that Sook Shin and her husband, two leading cancer researchers, hadn't backed-up their hand before-hand, practically losing years of research data.
Sadly, since they can't even remember the notebook's serial number, finding it will be an extremely difficult task for police officers.
Of course, the two posted a very serious reward (the “just return, no questions asked” type) for the notebook, urging the thief not to delete any of the critical data stored within the MacBook, a lot more important than the actual value of the device itself due to the fact that, after all, it could ultimately lead to the development of a cure for a very serious condition affecting a lot of people from all over the world.
All we can say is that we certainly hope that the researchers manage to get their Apple notebook back, with their research results intact, and that, on the future, they'll be careful enough to back up their data constantly (or at least carry their notebooks in their close proximity wherever they might go).
Find us on Google+
